Wendy's, Checkers Go to War with Fast-Food Competitors

Believe it or not, Wendy’s has never roasted one of its competitors like this before. Well-known for its social media barbs at opponents, the burger chain is headed to TV to fire off its latest verbal roundhouse.

In the first quarter of Sunday’s Super Bowl matchup between the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles, Wendy’s will run an ad spending 30 seconds taking McDonald’s to task. It starts by quoting McDonald’s off its own website, “Our beef is flash frozen to seal in fresh flavor.”

“The iceberg that sank the Titanic was frozen, too,” Wendy’s fires back, going on to say. “Skip the hamburgers at the Frozen Arches.”

Check out the full video below.

Wendy’s said one of the goals of the campaign, other than to promote its fresh beef of course, is to transition its sassy social media personality to another medium. The brand’s twitter account is one of the game’s most iconic. The National Compliment Day response is one of the more poignant comments directed to McDonald’s.

Wendy’s isn’t the only fast-food brand taking aim at its competition lately. Checkers & Rally’s took out a full-age ad in the Los Angeles Times to comment on Taco Bell’s release of Nacho Fries, a first for the Mexican chain. The ad invited Taco Bell employees in to any Checkers & Rally’s for some “deliciously seasoned pointers” and to learn the art of the fry from the experts.

“Checkers & Rally’s has been the fast food fry leader for more than 30 years—and we’re always up for some friendly competition,” says Terri Snyder, chief marketing officer of Checkers & Rally’s, in a statement. “Whether it’s Burger King rolling out hot dogs or Taco Bell launching fries, we’re excited about other brands helping us spread the gospel of fast food. The fact is, we do it best—and at the best value—and will continue to do so long after Taco Bell’s fries have come and gone.”

Checkers and Rally’s fries were named No. 1 by Yahoo! Back in 2015.

“To say that our guests love our fries would be an understatement. We’ve built our business from the very beginning on our Famous Seasoned Fries,” says Rick Silva, president and CEO of the 870-unit-plus brand, in a statement. “And while we welcome Taco Bell to the space, true Fast Foodies know where to get the best fries—that’s Checkers and Rally’s, no question.”